Just eight days until the election, and we assume you're on track to vote...right? So with that dispensed, let's talk once more about those two pro-casino measures on the Oregon ballot that have been abandoned by their sponsors.

The Canadian firms financially backing the Wood Village casino proposal -- contained in Measure 82 and 83 -- gave up their fight after polls made it clear they weren't making enough progress.

The Oregonian's Harry Esteve reports that Oregon's Grand Ronde tribal confederation was a powerful behind-the-scenes force financing most of the opposition to the casino proposal. This is the third time that the tribe has played a big role in stopping ventures that would compete with its Spirit Mountain Casino southwest of Portland.

In other political news:PERS COMPARISON: A national study of the 100 largest public pension funds found that Oregon's Public Employees Retirement System was better funded than all but 16, the Salem Statesman Journal reports. But that doesn't mean Oregon's fund is in good shape. PERS has an unfunded liability of about $16 billion, more than twice what it did two years ago.

ABUSE RECORDS: The Oregonian's Michelle Cole reports that states often don't share child-abuse records, meaning that abusers can often escape scrutiny by moving to another state.SENTENCING REFORM: Oregon's Commission on Public Safety is approaching a year-end deadline for delivering a report recommending several proposals aimed at slowing the rising cost of incarceration. The Oregonian's Les Zaitz looks at where the commission is headed.PROPERTY TAXES: Property taxes continue to rise in Oregon despite lower home values, The Oregonian reports. Overall, taxpayers in the Portland area will see about a 2 percent increase.

ATTORNEY GENERAL'S RACE: Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum keeps a low profile as she settles into her job, but Republican James Buchal is trying to raise the temperature of the race, The Oregonian reports.

OREGON PRESIDENTIAL POLL: A survey by Republican pollster Tim Nashif finds that President Barack Obama has a five-point lead in Oregon over Mitt Romney. That could represent a loss in support here for the president, Mapes on Politics reports.

SECRETARY OF STATE RACE: Blue Oregon, the blog that tilts heavily to Democrats, runs a piece fretting that Democratic Secretary of State Kate Brown could be hurt in her reelection race against Republica Knute Buehler by the presence of two left-leaning minor-party candidates on the ballot. They are Seth Woolley of the Pacific Green Party and Robert Wolfe of the Progressive Party.